Top Ten 2016 Young Adult Releases (So Far!)

HELLO AND HAPPY TOP TEN TUESDAY, GUYS! My first reaction when I saw this prompt was: oh my god, have I even read ten 2016 releases? As it turns out, I have, and here are ones I’d recommend. 🙂

1) Seven Ways We Lie – Riley Redgate

Paloma High School is ordinary by anyone’s standards. It’s got the same cliques, the same prejudices, the same suspect cafeteria food. And like every high school, every student has something to hide—from Kat, the thespian who conceals her trust issues onstage, to Valentine, the neurotic genius who’s planted the seed of a school scandal.

When that scandal bubbles over, and rumors of a teacher-student affair surface, everyone starts hunting for someone to blame. For the seven unlikely allies at the heart of it all, their seven ordinary-seeming lives results in extraordinary change.

WHAT I LOVED: This book has seven perspectives, and they’re all done amazingly well.

2) A Gathering of Shadows – V. E. Schwab

It has been four months since a mysterious obsidian stone fell into Kell’s possession. Four months since his path crossed with Delilah Bard. Four months since Prince Rhy was wounded, and since the nefarious Dane twins of White London fell, and four months since the stone was cast with Holland’s dying body through the rift – back into Black London.

Now, restless after having given up his smuggling habit, Kell is visited by dreams of ominous magical events, waking only to think of Lila, who disappeared from the docks as she always meant to do. As Red London finalizes preparations for the Element Games – an extravagant international competition of magic meant to entertain and keep healthy the ties between neighboring countries – a certain pirate ship draws closer, carrying old friends back into port.

WHAT I LOVED: Please, who doesn’t love the idea of parallel Londons? Not me, for sure! And that touch of romance was just so good and so… natural. HOLD ME. ❤

3) The Impostor Queen – Sarah Fine

Sixteen-year-old Elli was only a child when the Elders of Kupari chose her to succeed the Valtia, the queen who wields infinitely powerful ice and fire magic in service of her people. The only life Elli has known has been in the temple, surrounded by luxury, tutored by magic-wielding priests, preparing for the day when the queen perishes—and the ice and fire find a new home in Elli, who is prophesied to be the most powerful Valtia to ever rule.

But when the queen dies defending the kingdom from invading warriors, the magic doesn’t enter Elli. It’s nowhere to be found.

WHAT I LOVED: God, guys. I feel like this is one of those very underhyped books — I simply love the magic system and couldn’t help but to root for the protagonist.

4) The Rose and the Dagger – Renee Ahdieh

In a land on the brink of war, Shahrzad is forced from the arms of her beloved husband, the Caliph of Khorasan. She once thought Khalid a monster—a merciless killer of wives, responsible for immeasurable heartache and pain—but as she unraveled his secrets, she found instead an extraordinary man and a love she could not deny. Still, a curse threatens to keep Shazi and Khalid apart forever.

Now she’s reunited with her family, who have found refuge in the desert, where a deadly force is gathering against Khalid—a force set on destroying his empire and commanded by Shazi’s spurned childhood sweetheart. Trapped between loyalties to those she loves, the only thing Shazi can do is act.

WHAT I LOVED: This is the sequel of The Wrath and the Dawn! It’s honestly not as good as the first book, but Ahdieh’s writing is still pretty solid. 🙂

5) Symptoms of Being Human – Jeff Garvin

Riley Cavanaugh is many things: Punk rock. Snarky. Rebellious. And gender fluid. Some days Riley identifies as a boy, and others as a girl. The thing is…Riley isn’t exactly out yet. And between starting a new school and having a congressman father running for reelection in uber-conservative Orange County, the pressure—media and otherwise—is building up in Riley’s so-called “normal” life.

On the advice of a therapist, Riley starts an anonymous blog to vent those pent-up feelings and tell the truth of what it’s REALLY like to be a gender fluid teenager. But just as Riley’s starting to settle in at school—even developing feelings for a mysterious outcast—the blog goes viral, and an unnamed commenter discovers Riley’s real identity, threatening exposure.

WHAT I LOVED: This book is the first YA book I know of that explores genderfluidity. It’s also pretty easy to read.

6) The Unexpected Everything – Morgan Matson

Andie had it all planned out. When you are a politician’s daughter who’s pretty much raised yourself, you learn everything can be planned or spun, or both. Especially your future.

Important internship? Check. Amazing friends? Check. Guys? Check (as long as we’re talking no more than three weeks).

But that was before the scandal. Before having to be in the same house with her dad. Before walking an insane number of dogs. That was before Clark and those few months that might change her whole life. Because here’s the thing—if everything’s planned out, you can never find the unexpected.

WHAT I LOVED: This one’s a contemporary YA with a focus on friendship and family relationships. It’s also the perfect summer read.

7) Highly Illogical Behavior – John Corey Whaley

Sixteen-year-old Solomon is agoraphobic. He hasn’t left the house in three years, which is fine by him.

Ambitious Lisa desperately wants to get into the second-best psychology program for college (she’s being realistic). But is ambition alone enough to get her in?

Enter Solomon. Determined to “fix” Sol, Lisa steps into his world, along with her charming boyfriend, Clark, and soon the three form an unexpected bond. But, as Lisa learns more about Sol and he and Clark grow closer and closer, the walls they’ve built around themselves start to collapse and their friendships threaten to do the same. (less)

RATING: ★★★★☆

WHAT I LOVED: This was a rather recent read but I LOVED the characters in this one. The book itself was fast-paced, funny, and full of heart. ❤

8) The Star-Touched Queen – Roshani Chokshi

Maya is cursed. With a horoscope that promises a marriage of death and destruction, she has earned only the scorn and fear of her father’s kingdom. Content to follow more scholarly pursuits, her whole world is torn apart when her father, the Raja, arranges a wedding of political convenience to quell outside rebellions. Soon Maya becomes the queen of Akaran and wife of Amar. Neither roles are what she expected: As Akaran’s queen, she finds her voice and power. As Amar’s wife, she finds something else entirely: Compassion. Protection. Desire…

But Akaran has its own secrets—thousands of locked doors, gardens of glass, and a tree that bears memories instead of fruit. Soon, Maya suspects her life is in danger. Yet who, besides her husband, can she trust?

WHAT I LOVED: The writing is gorgeous, though I admit sometimes it doesn’t make sense. The world-building is also interesting, though the magic is largely unexplained.

9) Fifteen Lanes – S. J. Laidlaw

Noor has lived all of her fourteen years in the fifteen lanes of Mumbai’s red light district. Born into a brothel, she is destined for the same fate as her mother: a desperate life trapped in the city’s sex trade. She must act soon to have any chance of escaping this grim future.

Across the sprawling city, fifteen-year-old Grace enjoys a life of privilege. Her father, the CEO of one of India’s largest international banks, has brought his family to Mumbai where they live in unparalleled luxury. But Grace’s seemingly perfect life is shattered when she becomes a victim of a cruel online attack.

When their paths intersect, Noor and Grace will be changed forever. Can two girls living in vastly different worlds find a common path?

WHAT I LOVED: This book explores what it’s like to live in the slums of India through the eyes of a prostitute’s daughter. It’s honestly quite eye-opening.

10) Firsts – Laurie Elizabeth Flynn

Seventeen-year-old Mercedes Ayres has an open-door policy when it comes to her bedroom, but only if the guy fulfills a specific criteria: he has to be a virgin. Mercedes lets the boys get their awkward, fumbling first times over with, and all she asks in return is that they give their girlfriends the perfect first time- the kind Mercedes never had herself.

Keeping what goes on in her bedroom a secret has been easy- so far. When Mercedes’ perfect system falls apart, she has to find a way to salvage her reputation and figure out where her heart really belongs in the process.

87 thoughts on “Top Ten 2016 Young Adult Releases (So Far!)”

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Ohh greak picks for this week! I know that A Gathering of Shadows, The Star-Touched Queen and The Rose and the Dagger are all on my list for this week as well, and definitely in the running for my favourite book of 2016 as well!
I really need to read The Imposter Queen and The Unexpected Everything soon as well. Both are high on my to-read list because I loved the authors, and seeing them on your list for this week has just made me more excited to get started on them someday soon! 😀

Thank you! I highly recommend The Impostor Queen – I think it’s quite underrated, and I loved that the magic system actually makes sense but still have that atmosphere of wonder to it. Hopefully you like it as much as I have, and that TUE lives up to your expectations too. 🙂

That’s all right 🙂
Well I loved her first series, have you read that one yet, so I already have high expectations of this one but I’m sure I’ll end up enjoying The Imposter Queen. Also I’m really glad to hear the magic system made sense. For me, in fantasy books, that always one of the most important aspects, that the world-building makes sense.
I reckon TUE will, I really love Morgan Matson and I’ve seen nothing but good reviews so far 😀

I haven’t yet! I haven’t actually heard of Sarah Fine until The Impostor Queen, haha. I kind of assumed, at the time, that she was a debut novelist because it feels like everyone’s a debut author these days. 😛

I really enjoyed her first series so I would definitely recommend it. The first book was really good, I think the second suffered a little from middle book syndrome but then the third was brilliant again! Plus I think if you enjoyed The Impostor Queen you’ll like her other series as well! 😀

There are SO MANY books on your list that I’m dying to read! Like…seriously, HALF of your list? is on my “want to read” shelf on goodreads. I need to find time to get to them…after first buying them in some format, of course!

Awesome, AWESOME list this week! Thank you so so much, Reg, for stopping by my TTT and linking me here–happy book-ing to you!

The Star Touched Queen and The Imposter Queen were two favorites of mine as well, so I am so glad you enjoyed them too! And I’ve been hearing such amazing things about The Rose and the Dagger and The Unexpected Everything so I’m definitely going to have to give those a try too. 🙂 Thanks for sharing and, as always, great choices! ❤

I haven’t read any of these yet. But I am intrigued by several (The Imposter Queen and The Unexpected Everything…for different reasons obviously!). Love how you included what you liked about each book too. Thanks for stopping by my TTT earlier 🙂

YES, TRATD! While I didn’t include it on my list, it is one of my favorites for this year! I have so much love for that duology. & Seven Ways We Lie was such a great book and I’m glad your review convinced me to read it or I would’ve missed out on that one.

I totally agree about A Gathering of Shadows and The Unexpected Everything, they’re both great books. I haven’t heard of Seven Ways We Lie before but now I’m very curious about it, so I might have to check it out. And I’ve been meaning to read Highly Illogical Behaviour for a while because it looks really good!

Thanks for linking me to your TTT! I’m loving the list you have since many of those books are on my TBR (when I… you know… start actually making progress on my TBR :p) But I’m really happy to see you enjoyed ‘Imposter Queen’ and ‘Star-Touched Queen’ since those are two I’ve been paying some attention to in the past few months. Happy you liked them and I can’t wait to get my hands on them! ^.^

No worries, Melanie, and thanks for visiting! I highly recommend both The Impostor Queen and TSTQ – I really enjoyed them both, though I think their strengths are really quite different. Hope you like them too. 🙂

The only one of these I’ve read is The Star-Touched Queen, which I wasn’t the biggest fan of but I loved the writing so much. I did start A Darker Shade of Magic today and am loving it so I’m already looking forward to A Gathering of Shadows! All these lists have made me realise how behind I am 😂

I love that A Gathering of Shadows made it onto this list! That installment was truly epic and a step up from book one (though I enjoyed ADSoM as well). The Kell and Lila ship (and other ships) have definitely sailed. I really can’t wait for The Conjuring of Light! TT_TT

What other ships were in ADSOM? I feel like there’s really only Kell and Lila, and even then it was very… subtle, at least until the end. Which I liked. I can’t wait for ACOL too – hope it lives up to the series. ❤